Maryland legislators are all for transparency when it comes to those who work outside of the government. But they prefer to hide from scrutiny when it comes to their own finances and affiliations.
State senators and delegates failed to pass a law in the 2008 legislative session requiring state officials to file financial disclosure documents electronically and ignored it in the most recent session. They so despise disclosure that the bill (SB190) did not pass even after an amendment exempting elected officials was added. This adds insult to injury because the completed forms are not available online. To view them requires going to Annapolis during business hours.
They also chose to ignore again in the 2009 session a suggestion from the State Ethics Commission to “address membership by public officials on boards or directors of private corporations having sensitive business or regulatory involvement with the state.”
This is particularly important because of the $4 billion in federal stimulus funds winding its way through state government to state contractors starting this year. As the newly released 2008 State Ethics Commission Annual Report shows, businesses want a piece of the pie. Lobbying expenditures in Maryland rose to $43.2 million in calendar year 2008 from $40.6 million in 2007, despite the recession.
An expanded rule requiring state legislators to also disclose their affiliations and any affiliations their immediate family members hold with nonprofits should also top their agenda. As reported in previous columns, many legislators sit on boards of nonprofits where they direct taxpayer dollars. Others have noted how family members of legislators work at the organizations they fund.
That puts every other nonprofit without state connections at a disadvantage and unfairly benefits groups with power to sway electoral decisions. And not requiring mention of affiliations with businesses earning money from taxpayers fosters an environment where quid pro quos can happen.
The hypocrisy of state legislators is particularly glaring in light of two recent pieces of legislation. The first is the Maryland Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2008. It made possible a new searchable online database of state spending over $25,000. To view it, go tohttp://www.spending.dbm.maryland.gov. More recently, the General Assembly passed HB1192. It requires any nonprofit or for-profits receiving over $50,000 in state aid to disclose how they are using taxpayer money. The state is creating a searchable database for those forms, the first of which are due Sept. 1.
With newspapers struggling, fewer reporters cover the workings of the General Assembly and those of state houses across the country. That makes it ever more important for taxpayers to have access to how Maryland’s elected and appointed officials are spending their money.
Second, public should mean public. If financial disclosure forms are available to view, they should be made available in a format that is accessible to the most people. Since the Ethics Commission already has electronic capability, legislators have no legitimate argument to prevent people from reviewing their statements.
Besides, filing electronically would help the Commission, whose budget was cut in the last fiscal year, to devote more time to its core services of enforcing its rules, educating state employees about its regulations and offering guidance on state ethics law to those who request it.
The Annual Report from the Commission shows that 79 percent of those required to file financial disclosure statements chose to do so electronically. So it is not a burden for most people.
Gov. Martin O’Malley, who supports data-driven analyses of state agency performance, should champion more transparency from state legislators. He should encourage them to file financial disclosure forms electronically and make all of their business and nonprofit affiliations known. A great way to do that would be to include a few lines in their biographies on the General Assembly Web site. That would require no extra money – or legislation — and would quickly give people access to important information.
To paraphrase an old saying, if legislators can’t handle the heat, they should get out of the kitchen.
Examiner columnist Marta H. Mossburg is a senior fellow at the Maryland Public Policy Institute.
